Mark of Satan

I think "his things" can be interpreted many ways. First off, I think that it was meant to be mysterious and make you wonder about this man. By adding those subtle details you wonder, Is he psychotic? Is he on drugs? Or does he posses the "mark of Satan"? So with that said i think "his things" is an out burst or a craving, more specifically to drug and rape women. I think his things simply refer to another few people to terrorize and send them off running (if he lets them live of course). If you take the three quotes and read them one after another it makes a lot of sense. "Hadn't he wakened in the night with a pounding heart and a taste of bile with the premonition that something, one of his things, was to happen soon?" This sounds like craving, heart pounding, the taste of BILE and a 'premonition' or anticipation of a future event. "He was frightened of the possibility of one of his things veering out of control, for in the past when this had happened the consequences were always very bad. For him, as for others." This indicates its happened before, and had ended very badly... His sister also mentions that he is on parole. And lastly, "He could not believe the woman was escaping so easily. That his thing was no thing of his at all." I think after this realization, after his crazy had passed, I think he actually felt remorse for his terrible thoughts and that's why he begged Thelma to stay. That's why he dug his knees into the broken glass, so that he would remember. So he would have a physical "mark of Satan" that he could look at to remind himself how he felt.

I also believe that stupidly, he drank Thelma's glass of drugged lemonade.

There were some incredible description in the story. I think this added some subtle indication as to how crazy he was. "The sun was a soft slow explosion in the sky." "Blinking the way a mollusk might if they had eyes." "Then easing like a brisk mechanic doll into her recitation." and finally, "The gin coursing through his veins, which ordinarily buoyed him up like debris riding the crest of a flood and provided him with an acute clarity of mind, had had a dulling downward sort of effect." I adore these descriptions. Dont these seem like decriptions a psycho would use?